I am a former Pentecostal evangelist who renounced his beliefs for atheism in 1994. I have decided to write a blog where I share my thoughts and ideas about Christianity in general and the biblical God.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Only faith can guarantee the blessings that we hope for, or prove the existence of realities that are unseen. Hebrews 11:1 (NJB)

Faith is basically believing in something without valid evidence of its existence. It's an inner conviction based on your "gut feeling" that there is such a being called God, a creator of all things great and small. That is all good and well to believe, but at the same time all of it is nothing more than subjective.

Anyone who has been in love or infatuated can tell you that feelings are not a valid criteria upon which to make important decisions or judgments. Feelings are deceptive and at the same time blinding. Decisions based on emotions almost always tend to blind ones reason and cloud ones judgment. Logic demands objective evidence and an understanding before its states anything as fact.

I have always said that faith and reason are, have, and always will be irreconcilable due to the different views and requirements of both ideologies. Faith requires no evidence, it accepts what it has been taught (indoctrination) and what is written as divine. Reason analyzes the origin and history of the so called holy writ, and then judges it by its historical context, its contents, its historical accuracy, etc.

Once you set aside your fear and reverence for the bible and study it as you would any other work of literature, you will see the disparity in its contents. And you will realize that its claims to being divinely inspired are just that. Nothing could be substantiated as facts outside of the biblical texts themselves. There are many questions as to the veracity of the stories contained therein.

As a result of this, theologians are constantly hard at work to try to explicate the various and obvious flaws in the scriptures by coming up with exegesis. Through exegesis everything that is inconsistent with fact can then be reinterpreted in another sense such as allegory, or as a parable to try to take away from the fact that it is a disparity or contradiction.

Christians rejoice every time a so called archeological discovery is made that they believe serves as evidence of the truth of their beliefs (Shroud of Turin, Jesus family tomb, Noah's ark,etc.). Only to find out later on that they have been had, that what they believed were true artifacts turned out to be frauds. This demonstrates the power of indoctrination, it is so strong that no matter what evidence is shown in opposition of it it will never suffice.

Christians seek meaning in life, a reason for being. They refuse to accept that like all other life forms in this world and possibly elsewhere, we are born, we live, and we die. Their desire to live forever is met and satisfied with the false beliefs that they will survive death and live forever in a perfect place where there will no longer be pain nor sorrow. These beliefs are not rooted in fact, but faith and faith based on the bibles definition is nothing more than a delusion.

Monday, January 17, 2011

One of the many things I find most appalling about Christians is that they go out of their way to justify the cruelty of their deity. I have had several theists try to refute my claims that the biblical god is a tyrant by stating that he is our creator and thus he can do with us what he pleases. In my mind this goes to show just how warped the indoctrinated mind really is, they apparently cannot think rationally nor independently.

Let's see what the "holy" writ otherwise known as the bible has to say about the matter. 20. But you -- who do you think you, a human being, are, to answer back to God? Something that was made, can it say to its maker: why did you make me this shape?21. A potter surely has the right over his clay to make out of the same lump either a pot for special use or one for ordinary use.22. But suppose that God, although all the time he wanted to reveal his retribution and demonstrate his power, has with great patience gone on putting up with those who are the instruments of his retribution and designed to be destroyed; Romans 9:20-22 NJB

As you can see as is demonstrated throughout the scriptures the lord puts his "creation" in their place with the dictatorial tone that is common with him. The next verse goes into how lucky we are that he is merciful and doesn't destroy us outright. In Deuteronomy 32:39 the good lord is more direct: 39. See now that I, I am he, and beside me there is no other god. It is I who deal death and life; when I have struck, it is I who heal (no one can rescue anyone from me). And finally in the book of Luke 10:28 we are lovingly reminded:'Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; fear him rather who can destroy both body and soul in hell.'

After reading just those few out of the many threats this good and merciful lord makes upon mankind I can't help but feel like he is a mob boss and we are his cronies. Basically, his entire philosophy is do as I say and I will spare your life and reward you in the afterlife. If that is not a tyrant my dear Christian believers than I don't know what is. Saying that the fact that he does not strike us dead makes him merciful and kind is like saying that the lion will not eat you because he has already been fed.

There is no real moral or ethical justification for the cruelty of this fictional deity, nor any reason to believe he or in this case it exists since there is not a Christian alive who has seen him nor can define him. Stop making excuses and acknowledge once and for all that your religion by its own admission is based on fear. That your god is an animal and makes any earthly tyrant pale in comparison to the murders and the cruelties that he has committed by his own admission in your so called inspired word.

I am speaking as if he existed from your scriptures, but I personally do not believe there is a god. In my estimation your god is just like all the other gods before him; a fictional creation of mankind.

About Me

From 1990-1994 I was a Pentecostal evangelist from a very fundamentalist literalist church. At the time I believed I was saved, sanctified, and filled with the Holy Ghost!
In those days I lived, ate, and slept the gospel. During the week I was in church on Tuesdays Thursdays, and Sunday's. On Saturday and Sunday I was usually on one of two of Brooklyn, NY street corners preaching the gospel with my partner in the ministry. My specialty was exorcisms aka as a deliverance ministry.
I believed I walked and talked with Jesus in those days every minute of every hour. I was as fanactically entrenched in my beliefs as any one could possibly be.
I have been an atheist since 1994 when I abandoned my church and former beliefs. But it was not easy and no one was able to get me to the realization that my beliefs were false and my experiences a delusion. It took my reading the Bible in its entirety to realize that the God of the Bible was not worthy of worship and was not love. I saw more morality in myself than I did in the biblical monster